Opinion
Editorial

Editorial: The Hill’s #MeToo shameful, inevitable

In a development that feels at once outrageous and sadly inevitable, the #MeToo movement sweeping through show business, media and other workplaces has breached Parliament Hill.

It took a Canadian Press survey of female MPs to shine a spotlight on the bitter irony that what should be Canada’s most august workplace is apparently as riven with sexually predatory behaviour as Hollywood has turned out to be.

Thirty-eight of Canada’s 89 women elected to the House of Commons took part in the survey that measured the extent to which they had been targeted for sexual harassment, assault or misconduct of all kinds. Nearly 60 per cent reported that they had been subjected to one or more forms of sexual misconduct while in office, including improper comments, inappropriate gestures or sexually charged text messages.

Even worse, three MPs disclosed they were victims of sexual assault while four more said they were targeted for repeated sexual advances. The alleged perpetrators included MPs from the same party, MPs from other parties, lobbyists and constituents.

The victims, remember, are members of Parliament from all political stripes. What must the situation be for women working in jobs that are less prestigious and powerful? According to Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, these often younger, less-experienced women are at even greater risk for becoming targets of sexual misconduct.

The damage caused by these allegations will unfortunately do much to scuttle efforts to encourage women to run for office or choose a career in a political system still dominated by men.

The House of Commons is ironically the same political institution which unveiled legislation in November to crack down on harassment in federally regulated workplaces such as banks, telecommunication companies and transport providers.

If passed, the rules would also apply to politicians, their staff and other employees on Parliament Hill. But new rules could take a year or more to come into effect.

It’s shameful that such a mechanism to effectively deal with complaints of sexual harassment and mete out dire punishments for the guilty parties isn’t already in place on the Hill. Targeting sexual misconduct among our elected officials and those who work around and for them is especially imperative considering the longstanding problem of gender inequality in government.

What’s even more shameful is that men elected to high office, who make our laws and lead our country, would need such rules in the first place.